Project Infinitum
by layma
Summary: Clarke Griffin would do anything to escape her small town life in Arkenson, and all the whispers, rumors, and memories that surround her. The only good things left for her in her hometown are her friends, who have experienced their own up's and down's, and have survived the trials of adolescence together. But now the group is in for a whole new definition of the world survival.


_"Only two things are infinite, the universe and human stupidity, and I'm not sure about the former."_ \- Albert Einstein

* * *

**CHAPTER ONE:**

It was the end of the world, and Clarke Griffin was furious.

Alright, furious was probably an overstatement, but she was in the least very, really, and totally pissed. Why?

Jasper _freaking_ Jordan.

It was _his_ fault that she was sitting here, ever so uncomfortably in a shitty gum covered plastic desk, for an extra two hours on a Friday. The boy had a ridiculous tendency to play mad scientist in chemistry, and lo and behold, it quite literally blew up in his face. As well as hers. She _knew_ she should have picked Harper McIntyer to be her lab partner. Harper was a straight A student and less prone to lighting things on fire. But something called "loyalty" wouldn't let her say no to Jasper and his puppy dog eyes. The kid, although crazy, had been a devoted friend since middle school. Their group, although small, were steadfast and unchanging. And while Jasper may have had a screw loose, he was also her friend. How could she turn him down? But, if it weren't for him, she wouldn't be in this position; locked up in a room tinier than a broom closet with four juvenile delinquents and the faint smell of baloney.

To say Clarke felt completely out of her element would be an understatement. There was a reason she hadn't had detention in her life. She was a self diagnosed overachiever, who studied hard and cared more about her art than when the next football game was. She knew she could be uptight, and a bit self-righteous, but she didn't care. She was focused on the future, on leaving Arkenson, the smallest little town in the middle of no where. Where everybody knew everybody, and there were no secrets.

That being said, people still had their fair share. And for the smiling, happy town that Arkenson claimed to be, Clarke knew it wasn't all sunshine and daises. There was a lot that happened behind close, faded doors that would never see the light of day. But when a secret got out? There was no reeling it back in. Go to school one day, come back another, and you have the whole class whispering behind your back. Clarke knew from experience.

"Hey. Do you have anything to eat?" Octavia whispered besides her.

Clarke fought a smile, still in a foul mood thanks to the situation. But if there was anyone who could cheer her up, it would be Octavia. After the catastrophe that had been Chemistry, Octavia first laughed in disbelief, and then immediately offered to join her.

"Come on, Clarke's first time in detention? I wouldn't miss it!" She had said as they walked to their next class. "We'll take it over, Breakfast Club style."

"O, don't go getting detention for me. It's not worth it." Clarke replied, rolling her eyes.

Octavia laughed. "Please, it's nothing. I'll just hit on Mr. Rener or something. I'll be joining you in no time. Besides, you'll need an expert to show you around." She flashed an infectious grin.

Clarke gave her a look. "And how many times will that make it this month?"

Octavia pretended to count on her fingers. "One ... two ... oh like seven give or take."

That got a chuckle out of Clarke. For someone so friendly, Octavia was quite the troublemaker. Always the life of the party, and always the one paying for it. But she never seemed to mind. She'd always say that hey, life was worth living, so what if you shake things up?

Although there was no doubt in Clarkes mind that she got that attitude from her brother. Bellamy Blake was the elder of the Blake siblings, and five years their senior. He had had a bit of a reputation back in his day of being the same. While they had never actually been in school together, she had experienced more of Bellamy than she'd have liked. Being next door neighbors their whole lives and being best friends with his little sister would do that.

She still remembered the boy he had been, always hovering over Octavia, and always giving them grief. As much as he was overprotective of his sister, he was also a little shit. He'd tease them, bother them, and overall just be the annoying brother type. And that god awful _annoying _nickname he always called her out of spite still bothers her to this day. _Princess._ She told him how she wanted to be Indiana Jones for halloween, but he told her she couldn't because she was a girl. He gave her different suggestions instead, like a mermaid, or fairy, or a _princess. _Clarke, being Clarke, of course hated being told what to do. She went as Indiana Jones that year, but Bellamy was relentless in the nickname, calling her _Princess_ just to irk her. Being five years older didn't help either. He was always holding that authority over them, no matter what it was. When they were deciding on what game to play, or what movie to watch, he'd always pull the 'I'm the oldest so I get to decide' card. It aggravated Clarke to no end.

But there were good times too. Having Octavia, and even Bellamy in her life made being an only child increasingly better. Sleepovers and movie nights, playing in the woods or just hanging out around town made her feel like apart of the family. And as a kid, growing up with a scientist for a father and a doctor for a mother, she often felt alone. The Blakes became a surrogate family, and she found herself over next door with them more so than her own home.

That was, until Aurora Blake passed away.

She was the sweetest woman Clarke had ever known. Always in the kitchen baking something delicious, and doting on her children. She had worked two jobs to support them, but never let that take away from her time with her children. Clarke would be lying to herself if she didn't admit she had been jealous. She hardly saw her parents, and while she loved them with all her heart, she couldn't help but feel neglected. Was it so hard to spend some time with their only child? She used to bring it up when she was younger, unashamedly ask her parents to be around more. The promised again and again that of course, they were sorry, but work had just been so busy. They would try, every so often, to make it up to her. But the older she got, the less she asked, and the less they tried.

She didn't resent them, not exactly. She knew her parents loved her, provided for her, wished her the best, and she got the acceptance she craved so much from the Blakes. So when Aurora died, everything changed. The girls were only 14, and Bellamy 19, working through his first year of college. He was enrolled a few hours away, close enough to home to visit on the weekends, but he lived on campus. Unfortunately, he wasn't close enough to get to her in time to say goodbye.

It was traumatizing to say the least. Clarke can still hear Octavia's sobs clearly, see her clinging to her mother, begging her not to leave. And while it's been three years, you don't forget a thing like that. It stays with you. Octavia closed herself off for a while, unable to cope. Bellamy dropped out of school and moved home to take care of her, a legal guardian now. She didn't see them for weeks, and no matter how desperately she wanted to go over there and share in their grief, she knew the truth. It wasn't her mother. So she stayed away to give them time, retreating to her art, her books, anything to forget.

That's when she met Finn. Charming, confident, he oozed everything Clarke wished she had. She was picking up a scoop at the local ice cream shop on her way home, and he checked her out. Literally. She had seen him around school before, but he was a grade above her. She was flattered when he seemed to take interest in her, and even more so when he asked her if she wanted to go out sometime. Of course she said yes.

When summer started a few weeks later, Finn and Clarke hung out more than ever. Without Octavia around, she tried to fill the void. They'd go to the movies, take walks, talk about books and art. He was perfect to her. He kept her company, he was smart, cute, funny. She was in love. It was that blissful, naive first love that blinded you to anything they said or did wrong. Any red flags, any strange feelings in your gut, they were forgiven in a heartbeat. Because he could do no wrong, he was the _one._

Clarke wishes she could hit herself now for how _stupid _she had been.

As soon as that perfect summer was over, everything went to shit. She started her sophomore year of high school, without Octavia by her side. Over the summer, she had tried to reach out a few times, but was rebuffed. Eventually, she stopped trying, so wrapped up in the magic of _Finn._ She was excited to start school, although apprehensive, because this was the first year she had a boyfriend. Nothing could go wrong.

Enter Raven Reyes. She found out later that she had been gone at some kind of engineering camp for the summer. At the time, she hadn't a clue. Finn didn't mention her once. He had told her that she was the only one for him, and he had never felt that way about anyone else. It wasn't until she saw from down the hall Raven jump into his arms and kiss him senseless on that first day back that she realized something was very very wrong.

She didn't even talk to him that day, so confused and hurt. Originally so full of hope and excitement for the year, she felt it all crash down around her. No Octavia, no Finn, she was alone. When he confronted her about why she was ignoring him, she couldn't even ask the right questions. She just blew up, betrayal and hurt catapulting towards him. She couldn't _understand_ and he wasn't doing a good job explaining. He tried to tell her that it was nothing, an old girlfriend, but it all started to make sense to Clarke. Not holding her hand in public, only calling her pet names, being protective over his text messages, all the red flags that she blatantly ignored because she thought she _knew_ him. She laughs at her ignorance now.

So Clarke did the only thing she thought was right. She approached Raven Reyes. The girl was intimidating, to say the least. Clarke had no idea how to bring the situation up, but as it turns out she didn't have to. When Raven turned to face her that first time, she could see her eyes were red from crying. No matter how careful Finn had thought he was being, he hadn't been careful enough. Remember that thing about Arkenson having no secrets?

Raven didn't want to talk to her at all first. But if Clarke was anything at that point, she was determined to clear her name. It took a few times for Clarke to wear her down to just _explain_ that she hadn't known. That Finn had lied to her too. Surprisingly, Raven wasn't shocked. She admitted that he had done something similar before, although not to that extent. But at the time, she was young, and they had known each other for years. She thought if she forgave him, and moved on, that he'd stick by her side. She was wrong.

It took her some time to forgive Clarke and turn her anger where it deserved. And for the shock of the century, the two actually became friends. There must be something about being cheated on together to make people see eye to eye. While they didn't have much in common, the two seemed to click. And as both social pariahs at this point due to the gossip of the town, they found it easier to face it all together. Finn ended up transferring schools half way through the year to live with his dad in Phoenix, and he left with his head hanging.

A couple of months through that year, Clarke began to feel at ease. Raven was a good friend, who introduced her to Monty and Jasper. Slowly, she was adopted into their friend group, and for once, she felt like she'd be okay.

But she missed Octavia. She _missed _the girl who had been like a sister to her. After trying to come back into her life so many times, and being pushed away, she found it impossibly hard to keep trying. She'd see her around school, talking to people she didn't know, and acting like she was fine, but Clarke knew. Octavia wasn't the same.

She didn't push the problem, she couldn't, Octavia wouldn't let her get too close. She'd wave cordially to her as they passed in the halls, but there was an unspoken agreement that they'd both move on. No matter how much Clarke missed her, Octavia didn't want her in her life anymore, and Clarke respected her too much to push that. So they carried on, all throughout sophomore year, both in their own social spheres. Octavia started to run with the somewhat unruly crowd, but Clarke didn't concern herself too much. She was trying to move on.

That is, until one day, by some stroke of fate, on a hot blustering afternoon in June, she came home to find Octavia sitting on Clarke's front porch.

Clarke approached apprehensively, unsure what to expect. She was already sweating from the heat, and could tell Octavia was too. Wiping a hand across her forehead, she let out a small "Hey".

Octavia looked up, a tight smile on her face. "Hey neighbor."

Clarke looked around, there were no cars in her driveway, meaning her parents were still at work. Octavias driveway was empty as well, no sign of Bellamy's worn down old truck.

There was an awkward silence between the two.

With a sigh, Octavia got up to her feet. She looked around somewhat nervously before meeting Clarkes eyes. "Alright so, here's the thing. I kinda sorta locked myself out of the house."

A beat. Clarke stared at Octavia expectantly.

Octavia's mouth formed into a tight line and she crossed her arms. "I was just going to wait outside for a bit, but Bellamys not getting back until later tonight."

"And?" Clarke found herself asking.

Octavia all but huffed. "_And _it's just too damn hot. Listen, can I just ... I don't know, come inside for a bit? Not long I promise. I'm just really fucking thirsty."

Clarke was surprised. Out of all the things she expected Octavia to ask, that wasn't one of them. She didn't know what to say, or how this would go over, but she nodded, and moved past her to unlock the front door. The two trailed inside, relishing in the air conditioning as it blew the hot air away. Clarke shut the door behind them.

They stood awkwardly in the front hall. Octavia took some time looking around. Clarke walked past her towards the kitchen, dropping her bag off on the way. She took two glasses out of the cupboard and moved to fill them with some water. She heard footsteps behind her.

"Looks pretty much the same." She said quietly. Clarke turned to find her standing at the counter. She handed Octavia one of the glasses and took a sip of her own.

Clarke didn't know how to respond. So much time had past between the two of them, and so much had changed. She found herself wanting to ask a million questions, like _why _and _how are you_? But couldn't bring herself to do it. So she just nodded and replied with a "Yep".

Octavia nodded in response and sat at the counter. "And your mom and dad? Still working?"

That got a little chuckle out of Clarke. "Always."

Octavia returned the small smile and turned her attention to her cup. It was a few moments before either of them said anything else.

"So I heard about that whole Finn thing." She said into the silence.

Clarke felt her grip tighten on her cup. She wasn't expecting this, and sure as hell didn't want to get into it.

"Yeah. It was shitty." Was all she said on the matter.

"I always knew he was a shitty guy." Octavia said matter of factly.

Clarke raised an eyebrow. "Oh really?"

Octavia nodded. "Yeah. Any guy who cuts the sleeves off his shirts like that are always assholes."

Clarke couldn't help it. She started to laugh. She had said it so straight faced, but it was _true_. She had imagined Octavia saying something along those lines before, back when they first started dating. _"I can't believe he wears his hat back like that."_ She would have said. _"And ANY guy who thinks the Catcher in the Rye 'describes him perfectly' is a huge red flag. What a pretentious dick."_

Octavia looked up at her almost taken aback. But slowly, she started to laugh as well. She had always claimed that Clarke's laugh was infectious. Soon, their laughter was the stomach grabbing, bellyaching laughter that had been pent up for months. The two took turns of making fun of Finn and his _stupid_ hair and his _stupid _earring and his _stupid _face and it suddenly felt like old times. Once their roaring laughter subsided the two sighed, and looked at one another for a pensive moment.

"So really. How _are _you?" Clarke said quietly, almost as if she didn't want to scare Octavia away. As much as this moment was unexpected, Clarke was terrified it would end.

The next four hours were filled with explanations, apologizes, and multiple hugs. It took a bit of prodding, but eventually the damn burst. Octavia explained how she was sorry for pushing Clarke away, but she didn't know what else to do. She had been thrust into a deep dark pit without her mother in her life and she had taken so long to crawl out. By the time she did, it had already been too long. So she tried to move on. Clarke understood to some point, still partially hurt, but more happy to have Octavia back in her life than anything.

They talked late into the night. And by the time they heard Bellamy's car pull up into the driveway next door, it was almost midnight. She got up slowly, rolling off the bed, causing multiple bags of chips to fall off as well.

"There's my keeper. I better get over there, he'll wonder where I am." She gathered her things as she made her way down the stairs.

Clarke followed her to the doorway. They stood together for a moment, taking in the silence and the coolness of the night. Clarke worried this might have all been some crazy dream, and she's wake up tomorrow and nothing would have changed.

Clarke bit her lip as Octavia looked to her house as Bellamy unlocked their front door. Looking back at Clarke, she gave her a small smile. "You know he's going to force me to carry a spare key now. I'm never going to hear the end of this."

Clarke laughed. "That definitely sounds like Bellamy."

Octavia stood a moment longer, pulling her bags strap up higher on her shoulder and shifting from foot to foot.

"So ... " she started. "I'll call you in the morning? That is if you don't have any plans tomorrow."

Clarke felt her heart burst. She nodded, a bit teary eyed. "No, I don't have any plans. I'd love that."

Octavia grinned. "Me too. We'll figure something out." She leaned forward and gave Clarke a hug. A hug that held a year of regrets and apologies and hope. Then she exited the front door and made her way down the path. "Maybe it's a good thing I locked myself out huh?" She called back, sounding giddy, and crossed the lawn, reaching her front step.

"Looks like your irresponsibility paid off this time!" Clarke shot back, laughing at the retreating figure, who stuck up her middle finger.

The two had been inseparable ever since.

* * *

"Hey!" Octavia persisted. "I'm _starving_ here. I know you have a granola bar somewhere in that Mary Poppins bag of yours."

Clarke rolled her eyes as she started digging through her bag. She always kept a few snacks hidden away just in case. She liked to be prepared like that. She rummaged around until she found a broken up granola bar, still wrapped in its packaging. She handed it to Octavia, who sat in the equally shitty gum covered desk next to her.

"Here." She said, placing it on her desk. "I think it's all crumbled though."

Octavia waved her off. "Doesn't matter, I'm hungry. You're the best."

Clarke smiled and turned her attention back to her sketch book while Octavia ripped into her snack. While she hated the thought of wasting two hours in the heat stroke inducing classroom on a Friday, it wasn't all that bad. She had Octavia, who for having such a big "Breakfast Club" speech wasn't doing much besides eating and napping, and she had some uninterrupted time to focus on a new piece. she had to get three finished works done for her class by next week for the high school's art show, but she was coming up blank.

She found herself sketching whatever came to her first. She worked on one piece that reminded her of the forest behind her house, with the tall trees and sunlight beaming through. She had spent hours there with Octavia as kids playing fairies and pirates and treasure hunters and anything else their little imaginations could conjure up. It was a safe place for her, filled with laughter and light. She tried to convey that on the paper in front of her, but was frustrated that it wasn't turning out how she intended.

She flipped the page. There, she had sketched the barest parts of a face. Soft, but chiseled, with wispy black hair and piercing eyes. Only some parts were fleshed out, with a sprinkling of freckles over the nose and down the neck. But the more she stared at the page, the more discouraged she became, so she turned to the next.

It was blank. She was at a loss for what to draw. She felt pressured to make these pieces _perfect_, seeing as it was her last and senior art show. She knew it didn't really matter, since it was just for the high school, but if Clarke was anything when it came to her work, it was a perfectionist.

She glanced around the small class room hoping for some spark of inspiration. Instead she was met by a regretful gaze belonging to Jasper Jordan. He had already apologized profusely to her after the Chemistry fiasco, and tried to explain to their teacher that it was an accident and not Clarke's fault, but it fell on deaf ears. She had been pissed, rightfully so, but after a few hours she had come to the conclusion that it wasn't on _purpose_ and at least he hadn't singed off her eyebrows. Yet.

She rolled her eyes at him as he stuck his bottom lip out. Always the jokester, Clarke still had the hardest time staying mad. He may be eccentric, but he had a heart of gold. He was always the first one to jump on the bandwagon and support his other friends ideas, if he wasn't the one making them in the first place. He and Monty were always making them laugh, wether it was from their experiments or their extensive analyses of government conspiracies. Clarke believed you'd be hard pressed to find anyone else who believed in Area 51 more than those two.

She saw Jasper grin as he turned back around in his seat, no doubt his next great experiment laid out on the papers before him. He knew he was forgiven. Clarke cursed herself for being so predictable, but softly smiled none the less. She continued to look around the room in search of an idea, and found herself studying the rest of the students the surrounded her. She knew a few, having had classes together before, but none she were too friendly with. Never having been in detention before, she wasn't that surprised. They seemed to know Octavia though. When the two had entered the room an hour earlier, she was met by "hey's" and high fives. Octavia liked to pretend she was this badass who didn't give a shit when she was in trouble (which, to be fair, she really didn't) but Clarke knew better. While a daredevil, ever since they were kids and she was the one pushing Clarke to get out of her comfort zone, Octavia was still a softie at heart. She was insecure, and scared just like everyone else. She just hid it better. The last few years that they had together to rekindle their friendship had brought them a lot closer, and she found that the brave little girl she had always knew was way more than what met the eye.

While she hung out with her, and Raven, Jasper, Monty and their other friends, she still ran with a different crowd sometimes. See, Octavia liked to party. It was a habit she picked up that sophomore year they were apart. She liked to get a little daring, a little crazy, and a little drunk. She had a fair shares run ins with trouble, but overall Clarke just assumed it was an outlet. And no matter how hard she tried to drag Clarke along with her to those things, she couldn't. The one time she had agreed, she had found herself half naked in the Blakes aboveground pool with no memory of how she got there. Clarke wasn't in any hurry to "let loose" again anytime soon. But she didn't judge Octavia for it, not a bit. She just wished she would be more careful.

When the other students had acknowledged Octavia earlier in the afternoon, Clarke had assumed that's how she had known them. One in particular had started talking to Octavia about last weekend. Clarke knew him as Murphy, but she had her Octavia call him John in almost a teasing manner. He didn't seem to like that. Another familiar face was Nate Miller, a senior as well who she knew had to repeat a year. She had been paired up with him in Biology during junior year, and while quiet and a bit intimidating, was actually quite nice. He had sent her a small wave when they had first walked in.

The rest of them, she had no idea. She recognized faces, but didn't know names. They all seemed to be minding their own business quietly. For some reason, Clarke had imagined detention to be some kind of wild zoo, filled with delinquents and fire. So far, she was pleasantly surprised. Not that she intended to make it any kind of habit to end up in here, but it wasn't too bad.

After taking a full look around the room and getting no stroke of genius, she closed her sketch book and put it back in her bag. She got up and walked towards the front of the classroom where Mr. Pike was sitting, feet up, at a desk. He was reading a book, not even paying attention to the class around him.

Clarke cleared her throat. "Um excuse me."

Pike looked up at her confused. "Yes?"

Clarke shifted. "Am I ... allowed to go to the bathroom?" She asked. She heard Octavia snicker back at her seat.

Pike sent her an unbothered look and waved her off towards the door. She let out a small "thanks" and headed into the hallway.

"Bring me back a coke, would you?" Octavia shouted after her. Clarke could hear Pike admonishing her in return.

Clarke chuckled at that, and continued down the hall. She stopped by the restroom first, and entered the first stall. Afterwards, she went to wash her hands. While standing in front of the sink she looked at her reflection in the mirror. Her shoulder length blonde hair was cut perfectly, but the June humidity didn't do much to help with the frizz. She tried to smooth it down with some water, but there was no noticeable change. Instead, she splashed some water on her face, trying to combat the flush in her cheeks. Clarke was much more of a winter person, but being in southern Georgia meant stifling heat in the spring, summer, and most of the fall. Winter was nice, but it was more cool than cold. She had dreams to move to New York, or Chicago once she graduated. She planned on taking a gap year before starting at a university, to see the world and to experience anything outside this little town life. For a girl with so many plans, she really just wanted to see where the wind took her. As long as it was far away - and cold.

She did worry about leaving her friends behind. Her parents on the other hand were hardly aware of what was going on. These last few months had been crazy busy for both her father at the lab and her mother at the hospital. Her mom had mentioned over a Chinese takeout dinner the other night about how there had seemed to be some sort of epidemic going on. She thought it had something to do with the water. There had recently been a large amount of fish dying in the Arkenson lake, where most of the town got its water supply. Her mother suspected it was making people sick.

"It's nothing to worry about, doesn't seem serious." She had sad, shoveling another bite of beef lo-mein. "I'm just worried about the rate. We're going to need more supplies soon and our next shipment isn't scheduled until next month." She waved her chopsticks around haphazardly. "I tried to ask Captain Jaha to speak with the Mayor about it, see if they could get some guys down to check out the lake but he said there were bigger fish to fry." Abigail Griffin shook her head.

Her father on the other hand, had seemed completely frazzled, which wasn't a completely new state for Jake Griffin. He was working later nights and earlier mornings, and when asked if everything was okay could only answer with a "We're working on it." Clarke was used to that. Her father was always a problem solver. He worked and worked at something until it was fixed. That was, if the problem was equations and numbers. When it came to his own family, he seemed to miss that tenacity. But Clarke knew her father, and her mother loved her. They were both so career oriented, and while it had bothered Clarke as a child, she gave them the benefit of the doubt now. They showed her they loved her in different ways, and when they _did _take time out to spend with her, it meant much more. She remembered the first time her dad had taken them camping. He told them how his father had taught him how to pitch a tent, catch fish, cook, set traps, the whole nine yards. Clarke, who had been 11 at the time, had told him that she didn't need to know any of that stuff. She wasn't interested in camping. Besides, they were only a mile or two away from the house, in the woods behind their home.

But Jake told her to listen. To listen to the wind in the trees and the birds and the leaves. He told her to _embrace_ everything around her. And when nighttime fell, he pointed out and named constellations, telling her their stories and how they're a million miles away.

"We're so tiny, Clarke." They were lying on a blanket, spread out under the clearing. He gestured to the sky and continued. "We're so tiny on this tiny planet in this _huge _universe and yet ... we feel so much. We _have _so much. It feels minuscule but the world? It's ours. Life is sacred. It's all we have. We need to make it worth something."

At that age, she was more interested in the stories and the marshmallows that Abby was roasting at the fire pit. But the words had stuck with her ever since.

She didn't know what made her think of that now, as she stared at her sweaty appearance in the faded glass. So she shook her head, and dried her hands. She left the bathroom and made a right down the hall, towards the closet vending machine. Standing in front, she contemplated her choices. She got a coke for Octavia and a sprite for herself. The coke dropped down, but the sprite got stuck halfway.

"Oh come _on."_ She groaned. She grabbed the coke and set it aside. Then she tried to pound on the front to loosen the sprite and cause it to fall. It didn't work. Frustrated, she tried hitting from the side and different points. She placed her hands on her hips in frustration and glared at the machine.

"I refused to let you eat any more of my money." She said sternly, as if it would give up and relinquish the sprite. Even the formidable "Griffin Stare" wasn't enough to get what she wanted so she tried the next best thing and tried to rock the machine.

It didn't do much, considering it was much bigger and much taller than Clarke, but still, all five foot three of her tried to shake the damn thing. She got it to move one, twice and then three times before she heard a loud _**BOOM**_!

Clarke immediately stopped. The irrational part of her brain first thought _she _had made that noise, and somehow had broken the machine. _Shit._ She thought. Then the rational part of her mind told her there was no way that was her, and it was very clearly from somewhere on the other side of the school.

There was another crash, like glass breaking. It sounded like a larger version of one of Jaspers failed experiments. Clarke was confused, and a bit on edge, but mostly concerned. Just then, the fire alarm went off. Drinks forgotten, she jogged back down the hall towards the classroom and entered into a heated discussion.

"What the _fuck?" _

"Come on dude you gotta let us go check this out."

Murphy was peering out the large window alongside a boy Clarke didn't know. Through the window she could see smoke rising from the other side of the school. It looked like it came from the gymnasium.

"I said no!" Pike said forcefully, standing by the door. He ushered Clarke in from the hallway. "No one leaves the group. Now we're going to exit just like we would in a fire drill alright? Come on, is this everyone?"

Pike gathered the students and ushered them out the door and down the hall. The fire alarm was ringing, practically giving Clarke a migraine.

"Ugh. Fuck." Octavia grimaced as she covered her ears.

"Hey at least we're out of detention early." Jasper was grinning. He didn't seem bothered by the screeching alarm.

"Yeah except the _gym's_ on fire." Miller replied, walking up along side them.

Jasper laughed and swung his bag back and forth. "You say that like it's a bad thing."

"It_ is_ a bad thing. We don't know what happened." Clarke jutted in.

Jasper waved it off as they exited the side doors into the June heat and into the parking lot. A small group of other students and faculty who had stayed behind for various reasons were also gathered there. "It's nothing. A janitor probably just had an accident or something. Lightbulbs, am I right?"

Octavia wacked Jaspers arm.

"Ow! Come on!" He protested, rubbing his arm and glaring at her.

"Clarkes right. We don't know what happened." She said in retaliation.

Murphy came up beside them, his friends tagging along. "I heard it was a protest for the prom, and to that I say right on."

Clarke scoffed. "You think kids are going to set the gym on _fire_ to protest prom?" She shook her head. "That's too extreme."

Murphy eyed her but Pike cut him off before he could say anything else.

"All right kids, we can't go back into the building before the fire department comes, so just sit tight. It should only be a few more minutes."

The kids grumbled and sat on the curb, staring at the smoke that continued to rise. They chatted about this and that but Clarke wasn't paying too much attention. She was thinking about her bag. Specifically, about her sketch book in her bag. She hoped the fire didn't spread, because she _really_ didn't want to lose her work.

After a few more moments had passed, she saw the teachers start to gather. They seemed to be in heavy discussion. Confused, Clarke checked her phone for the time. It had been fifteen minutes. During fire drills, the department had arrived in about three minutes flat. It wasn't a large town, so either they were busy somewhere else, or something was very very wrong.

Clarke nudged Octavia. "Hey. Text Bellamy."

Octavia pulled her phone out but gave Clarke a questioning glance. "Why?"

Clarke looked around. Then she looked down the road. The school was on a hill, with the rest of the town down hill. One should have been able to see smoke coming from the school from all around. Clarke felt it immensely strange that no one, not the fire department or the police force, and especially not the nosy old town women had come to see what had happened. Hell, for even more minor things than the gym catching on fire brought people out. Why wouldn't they be here for this?

Clarke didn't want to sound crazy though. It couldn't literally be nothing. So instead she said "Just ask him where he's at."

Octavia shrugged but did as she was asked. Clarke composed a message to her parents as well, asking them to check in. She waited a minute, then two, but no response. She shoved her phone in her back pocket instead. She tried to keep the rising uneasiness at bay. Clarke had a tendency to overreact, and expect the worst. Her father would always say better safe than sorry.

Then her phone beeps. It's a message from her mother. _Im at the hospital, what's wrong?_

The hospital was located a few miles outside of town. It was shared with the next town over. While advanced, it wasn't the largest hospital around. Any major surgery or things like that would have to be done in the next county. She had spent a fair share of time observing her mother at work, and learning her way around the hospital. That was back when she still thought she wanted to be a doctor, like her mother.

Clarke looked down at the phone. If something was wrong, the hospital would likely be one of the firsts to know, behind the emergency services. Clearly it was nothing. _Nothing._ She typed out. _Just wanted to know if you wanted mexican for dinner. _

She slid the phone back in her pocket and tried to focus on the conversation the rest of the group was having. It seemed to be about wether or not robots were really going to take over the world in the next twenty years.

"No _listen to me._" Jasper was imploring them. "It's gonna happen. I've done my research. There's nothing we can do about it. They're in _everything._ We use technology all the time. They have complete control over us, I mean take it all away and we're nothing."

Murphy was rolling his eyes. "Come on man you're not serious."

Jasper launched into another rant about the fall of humanity. Clarke tuned him out. She'd heard it all before. His conspiracy theories were less theories and more delusional stories.

She looked back at the smoking gym. It seemed to have grown. She looked back at the teachers, who seemed even more frazzled now. She tried to ignore the feeling in her gut.

But just then, she heard the screeching of tires as a beat up old red truck came flying into the parking lot. The group looked up, surprised. The truck stoped right in front of them and none other than Bellamy Blake jumped out of the drivers seat.

"O!" He shouted, hurrying over to her.

She stood, clearly confused. "Bell? What are you doing here? I texted you?"

He waved it off. "We have to go." He took her arm and dragged her towards the car.

She tried to stop him. "Wait, no stop! You're freaking me out! What's going on?"

He stoped pulling and turned to face her. He ran a hand over his face. He was still wearing his uniform from work at the auto shop and he was covered in oil. "O I ... I can't explain it. I don't know how. But we have to go. Something's happening and it's not safe." He grabbed her by the shoulders, and then looked over back to the students. His eye's reached Clarke.

"Come on, you too." He ordered jerking his head towards the car.

Pike then came over, demanding to know what's going on.

"Sir, I'm picking up my sister and Griffin early today." He informs, without missing a beat he jumps back into the car and shuts the door. Octavia slides in from the passenger side and holds the door open for Clarke.

Pike looked angry and confused. "Bellamy Blake you can't not take a student from detention early you -"

Bellamy ignored him, and gestured for Octavia to put on the seat belt.

"Well shit!" Murphy exclaimed. "If they're leaving early, so am I."

Pike then turned to the rest of the teens, shouting and trying to make them stay put. But few who had driven to school got in, ignoring him. They quickly sped off.

Jasper and Miller were still standing, unsure of what to do. Pike was busy trying to talk with the other teachers who were now trying to corral their own students from leaving. It seemed like Bellamy's entrance had shaken everyone.

Clarke looked through the cab to meet Bellamy's nervous gaze. She didn't know _what_ was going on, and she was scared to ask. So instead she said "Is it that serious?"

He looked at her. His eyes were still wide and he seemed disoriented. He nodded quickly.

Clarke looked back at Miller and Jasper, who both held their phones to their ears.

"Hey!" She called over to them, and they looked back up at her.

"Hop in the bed." She said. They looked towards each other confused, but the time for questions wasn't now. A moment later, they hopped on and tapped the roof signaling they were good to go.

Clarke then joined Octavia in the front, and put her seatbelt on. She closed the passenger door with a thud and turned to Bellamy. He had taken no time throwing the card into drive and peeling out of the student parking lot, flying by the rest of the faculty and remaining students. He jumped on the first backroad from school and headed away from town.

* * *

**AUTHORS NOTE:** Hello, so, it's been a hot minute. Four years about? Originally, I had a ton of plans for this fic. I was _pumped_, and very much into the 100 at the time (which, only had a season and a half at the time) but I was also in my senior year of high school. So, you can see why this story flopped. There was a ton of things going on in my life and a lot I had to do. I won't bore you with the details, but once I stopped this story and my others, I simply got caught up in everything and stopped writing fanfiction. I started writing original work, got more into poetry, won some contests, and of course tried to keep up with my constant college work as well. But, I never lost my love for fanfiction, I was still reading a ton of it, but my inspiration for it just kinda ... left. There was a lot of other things going on and other things I wanted to focus on as well.

But, I always wanted to come back. There's just something about fanfiction that makes me feel like a kid again (albeit, hopefully a better versed kid) and I've always thought it was great practice, especially when dealing with writers block. You can take characters that are already formed, characters you love, and write your own ideas for them. And while yes, I have created, written, and loved my own characters now (currently half way through my original novel!) I felt myself rereading and looking through my old fanfic accounts. It made me nostalgic, reminding myself of that kid I used to be just in _love_ with stories. And while some of it was very ... cringe worthy, the overall idea of it was still appealing to me. So, with that being said, this is my attempt to rework, rewrite, and continue one of my favorite stories I've worked on. The premise of putting these kids from a sci-fi TV show into a high school/small town setting turned zombie apocalypse (although I'm sure it's been done before) was always so intriguing to me. And while I'm suffering from some writers block on my own novel, I found inspiration to try to work on this one instead.

That being said, I honestly can't make any promises. I _hope_ that this takes off and I can flood it with content but ... I know that's not reality sometimes. So at this point, I'm taking it one step at a time. What you've just read is an updated/reworked version of the first chapter from 2014. I'm going to do the same with the second chapter. So if you're one of the few who had read this story originally and notice differences, that would be why. It literally went from 1,600 words to 7,900 something words so there's that. My overall idea for this story is still the same, but I can already feel it taking a different direction, and I'm excited! I just want to say thank you to every one who clicked and read this story, it means a lot, and I'm thrilled to be back. Feedback is also always appreciated! Let's see where this goes. Happy writing! - _Lay_

_P.S. _Please suspend belief in regards to the ages of the characters, along with any other inconstancies. I may have gotten math wrong or I may have just changed whatever it was in the show to fit the story. It is fanfic after all!


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